"Former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak has been found guilty in his second major trial involving the multibillion-dollar 1MDB scandal. The ruling was handed down by the Kuala Lumpur High Court on Friday, where Najib, 72, faced four counts of abuse of power and 21 counts of money laundering over the illegal transfer of about 2.2 billion Malaysian ringgit ($539 million) from 1MDB."
"Prosecutors say Najib abused his position as prime minister, finance minister and 1MDB advisory board chairman to move large amounts of money from the Malaysian sovereign wealth fund to his personal accounts more than a decade ago. Najib was previously found guilty and sentenced in 2020 to 12 years imprisonment for misappropriating around $9.9 million in 1MDB funds. His sentence was later commuted to six years."
"The marathon legal proceedings have spanned seven years, and saw lawyers call 76 witnesses to the stand, including Najib himself. The trial has had a lot of delays, and it's a very complicated thing to understand, said Bridget Welsh, an honorary research associate with the University of Nottingham Asia Research Institute Malaysia. These financial crimes are multi layered, and it's been a long, extensive process, Welsh told Al Jazeera."
"Najib apologised last year for mishandling the 1MDB scandal, but during his recent trial maintained that he had been led astray by the fugitive Malaysian financier Jho Low, who has been wanted by Interpol since 2016 and whose current whereabouts are unknown. During legal proceedings on Friday, Judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah told the court that evidence indicated Najib had an unmistakable bond and connection with Low, who served as the prime minister's proxy"
Najib Razak was found guilty on four counts of abuse of power and 21 counts of money laundering for the illegal transfer of about 2.2 billion Malaysian ringgit from 1MDB. Prosecutors say Najib abused his roles as prime minister, finance minister and 1MDB advisory board chairman to move sovereign wealth fund money into his personal accounts more than a decade ago. Najib was previously convicted in 2020 for misappropriating about $9.9 million and sentenced to 12 years, later commuted to six. The proceedings spanned seven years and involved 76 witnesses, including Najib. Najib apologised for mishandling 1MDB but said he was led astray by fugitive financier Jho Low. A judge said evidence showed an unmistakable bond between Najib and Low.
Read at www.aljazeera.com
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